What a busy morning I’ve had spending quality time with the Elders in the Woodland. We started off with a spot of tai chi in amongst the snowdrops, followed by a pot of Rosy Lee reclining on the toadstools. I’ve been nagging them all to get up and be more active since reading more about [read the full story…]

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As the Olympics draw to a close, I’m turning my attention from amazing sporting feats by those at the peak of fitness to the health and wellbeing of older people, and in particular what can be done to reduce the rate of falls amongst this large sector of society. The BMJ has published the results of a randomised [read the full story…]

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The elf elders round these parts are pretty clued up for their generation and have hooked themselves up to t’Internet. They love it, so much so that the Tuesday night Bingo bash has been usurped by an evening under the Oak Tree where they compile Spotify playlists and challenge the goblins to games of Wordfeud. [read the full story…]

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Calling all you sexagenarian-plus elders out there! If it’s good vibrations and excitations you’re looking for in order to improve your balance and walking then a team from Barcelona in Spain may have the answer. In fact, using whole body vibration (WBV) to improve body performance is not a new idea but the use of [read the full story…]

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You may have seen, and marvelled at, recent video footage of an incredible 86 year old, Johanna Quaas, performing gymnastic feats on the parallel bars and mats of Turnier Der Meister exhibition floor. I sense that fear of falling is not something that’s in her head at all, but it is a significant concern for [read the full story…]

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This Saturday the World Health Organisation celebrates World Health Day with a call to reinvent ageing, as this year the theme is how good health can add life to years, enabling older men and women to not only live longer, but also to extend their active involvement in all levels of society. How we can maximise [read the full story…]

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It may be beautiful to do nothing and rest afterwards, as the saying goes, but older people who are generally fit and do not have health problems which limit their mobility should aim to be active every day and to notch up at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, such as cycling, [read the full story…]

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If you think rickets is a thing of the past, think again. A condition caused by lack of vitamin D, affecting growing bones, rickets was widespread in 19th century Britain amongst the urban poor but died out in the early part of the last century. It is now appearing again, with several hundred cases of [read the full story…]

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